A presentation about an expanded showgrounds for Wellington, Fla., got priority from Wellington Lifestyle Partners in its first appearance before the Village Planning. Zoning and Adjustment Board Wednesday night.
Plans for the Wellington North and South development project received a thumbs-down last month from the Village’s Equestrian Preserve Committee. That panel unanimously was against rezoning acreage set aside for equestrian purposes in order to complete a land use designation swap that is necessary for a major expansion of the Wellington International showgrounds.
Here’s a diagram of the property around the showgrounds.
Members of the preserve committee, which is only an advisory group, pointed out that they did not see an application for the expanded showgrounds during their two-day hearing. They emphasized they had no guarantee that WLP would actually sell the land to Wellington International, since the two don’t have a signed contract.
That complaint obviously hit home, because right off the bat, WLP offered the zoning board details about what is planned for the showgrounds, part of the South segment of the proposal.
“This is an opportunity, a moment in time, to create state-of-the-art facilities that will double the size of the showgrounds for all three disciplines — dressage, hunters and jumpers. As we move forward with this project, if we are approved, this will be the first dirt that is moved and this will be the first set of structures that will be built,” promised Doug McMahon, managing director of the developer, the Tavistock Group, co-founder of the Nexus Luxury Collection and the chief executive officer of Wellington Lifestyle Partners.
Rendering of a “wow” concept for the entrance to the expanded Wellington International showgrounds.
Wellington International President Michael Stone said dressage isn’t really viable at the Equestrian Village, where it has been held since 2012. It is separated from the main showgrounds by about a mile. Equipment and catering has to travel that distance, which has made access difficult and raised safety concerns. Those problems would be alleviated if all the disciplines were part of the same contiguous footprint, Stone noted.
The current dressage facility (slated for housing under the Wellington North plan) is “small and needs a lot of investment. We want to create the best possible place for dressage,” said Stone.
He pointed out that Wellington International’s parent company, Global Equestrian Group, has a big business selling dressage horses “and to sell horses, you need a showcase. Moving it over to Wellington International, we’d then have the ability to showcase those horses. It’s all part of a major planning. We’re going to double the size of the showgrounds to 190 acres.”
Stone said expanding the showgrounds is necessary to compete with up-to-date equestrian facilities in Sarasota and Ocala, each of which is approximately three hours from Wellington.
Architectural firm Populous, which is involved with Olympic venues in Paris and Los Angeles, will be designing the new showgrounds. The firm’s Todd Gralla, director of equestrian services, showed designs that promised a “wow moment” upon entering the glittering new facility.
“Interested parties” addressing the committee cited concerns about traffic and losing the equestrian ambience that has made Wellington famous around the world. There is quite a lot of opposition to the Wellington North and South project. A petition against removing Equestrian Preserve land and amending zoning to allow an increase in residential density for high-end houses and condos in the preserve had 5,059 signatures as of July 18.
This is the notice posted in the Village about Wednesday’s hearing.
The zoning board hearing, which lasted nearly four hours and continues Thursday night, will get under way with comments from the public. The final decision on the project will be made by the Village Council, which is scheduled to take it under consideration next month.
Check back at this website after the second hearing to learn how the board voted.
Meanwhile, the Village Council has approved 27 luxury homes on a former golf course inside the sprawling Palm Beach Polo complex. The Farrell Building Co West. Plans for Farrell East have been dropped in the face of protests from the community.
Andrew Carduner, the president of Palm Beach Polo’s homeowners association of 3,000 residents, praised the cooperation of Farrell’s Florida rep, Michael Sanchez, saying he has been responsive to residents’ concerns.
But when Carduner appeared during Wednesday’s Zoning Board meeting on Wellington North and South to comment against those plans on behalf of what he called the “equestrian bedroom of this community,” he cited the complaints heard during the meeting to that point as he stated his opposition to the project.
